Elder Futhark is the base language of the game, but every realm in the game has its own, and for certain realms will be possible to learn their entire language. Translating something back might help to open parts of the game and reveal hidden questlines.

Magic in the game all involves words, spoken incantations and runes; a earth magic is mentioned for example that involves touching the ground to use parts of something (maybe parts of dead enemies? Parts of the enviroments like rocks and roots/vines?). An item is also mentioned that you can access that Kratos can open for the kid to get pieces of story and recall stories his mother told to him.

In the game, runes connects the characters to the magic of the world (tattoing a rune on a person, like Atreus, will embue the person with a power) but are also there to create the sense of a barrier between the player/Kratos and the world. Kratos will need the help of Atreus to translate the runes. Some puzzles will involve reading runes and translating them to make a decision.

Nordic gods are vastly different from the greek gods. Balrog compares the greek gods to politicians living in marble palaces that likes to manipulate people into doing things, while he describes the norse gods (Æsir, Vanir and Giants) as more "down to earth". The Æsir are living every moments to its fullest, always ready to "party", fight and drink. The Vanir are living in armony with nature, always seeking balance and are the keepers of magic. The Giants are like "artists" that creates fantastic creations and the ones that are eventually victimized by a never ending war between the other two races.

Member

It's more a bucket of interesting nuggets about the game rather than any major details about how things will play out, but it's super interesting to hear how they've basically contextualized the lore and logic of Kratos's place in the Norse lands and the setting.

Member

I've not heard a single bad thing about this game and these tidbits are great. I love scale in a game and the concept art looks like I won't be disappointed at all. Wonder how big these giants will get.

Member

I've not heard a single bad thing about this game and these tidbits are great. I love scale in a game and the concept art looks like I won't be disappointed at all. Wonder how big these giants will get.

Member

I've not heard a single bad thing about this game and these tidbits are great. I love scale in a game and the concept art looks like I won't be disappointed at all. Wonder how big these giants will get.

While I'm quite confident Cory and SSM can deliver, it's worth noting that we have not seen an meaty chunk of GoW gameplay that, emphasis - that shows off all the expanded core mechanics, world design and expanded ideas/toolset of the game.

The first gameplay reveal showed nuggets of those ideas, but we've yet to see them at a mechanics-level.

Hoping it won't be that long till we get a preview or something that shows off how the new mechanics and ideas function.

It's also known for said gameplay becoming very rote and predictable, so don't romanticize the gameplay of previous titles too much. It was very much an arena battler trivialized by powerful three button spammable combos, elevated by the story and puzzle sections that separated them.

God of War's combat sections by themselves were actually the "filler" of the games (not to be confused with the highly choreographed boss battles which were always a thrill).

Junior Member

It's also known for said gameplay becoming very rote and predictable, so don't romanticize the gameplay of previous titles too much. It was very much an arena battler trivialized by powerful three button spammable combos, elevated by the story and puzzle sections that separated them.

God of War's combat sections by themselves were actually the "filler" of the games (not to be confused with the highly choreographed boss battles which were always a thrill).

Member

While I'm quite confident Cory and SSM can deliver, it's worth noting that we have not seen an meaty chunk of GoW gameplay that, emphasis - that shows off all the expanded core mechanics, world design and expanded ideas/toolset of the game.

The first gameplay reveal showed nuggets of those ideas, but we've yet to see them at a mechanics-level.

Hoping it won't be that long till we get a preview or something that shows off how the new mechanics and ideas function.

I'm not going in expecting these things to be anything but added awesomeness where you could mostly skip it and still kill everything. If it's deeper then cool...but I'm expecting Kratos to be the most powerful weapon for any situation.

But...It would take a colossal F up on their part for me not to be entertained. I just want to kill things in an awesome world and it look as good as possible.

Member

They meant filler in as much as the combat was mechanically simple and was used with less invention than puzzles and environmental stuff. No one is saying they should go the other way, but considering how rudimentary the combat remained there's no harm in Barlog and Co aiming to improve all aspects of the series rather than sit on the laurels of one.

Member

isn't learning language runes to access hidden areas literally word for word a game mechanic in Rise of the Boring Raider?

Anyway, I'm apprehensive about a God of War game with sidequests. Both this and Uncharted are a series of fast-paced games with a focus on gripping stories, and the next gen Uncharted certainly never needed any sidequests.

It sounds like they're trying to talk it up that way, but I'm betting it's very rudimentary in oractice.

This actually reminds me of something the Uncharted: LL director said on their launch livestream. He mentioned picking Chloe as lead character was easy because they knew she could do everything Drake could, so she worked with all their gameplay systems. I just had to laugh at the "systems" part. I love Uncharted to death, but would never ever think of or describe it as a game with systems.

Member

It sounds like they're trying to talk it up that way, but I'm betting it's very rudimentary in oractice.

This actually reminds me of something the Uncharted: LL director said on their launch livestream. He mentioned picking Chloe as lead character was easy because they knew she could do everything Drake could, so she worked with all their gameplay systems. I just had to laugh at the "systems" part. I love Uncharted to death, but would never ever think of or describe it as a game with systems.

Simple movement in any game is a gameplay system, the mechanics of melee, shooting, climbing, etc are all different systems. Systems can be simple or complex, but they're different systems. Them working in sync is how games work

Banned

Yes, I understand that in a literal sense, but I don't think Uncharted as a franchise is driven by those systems or how they interact, but the characters and the stories. The gameplay can be fun, but it's ultimately a means to an end (at least for me.) The most systems-driven game ND has made in the immediate modern era must be TLOU and that was quite a drag for me.

Anyway yes, of course I understood him in a literal sense, but I don't think there's a lot of meat on the bone of that game in quite that way and I could see it being the same for GoW. Especially when they're talking about not just having a larger story focus, but not ever cutting the camera and having a button dedicated to interacting with the son. I actually like narrative leaning games more than anything else, si that stuff sounds cool, but not terribly conducive to intricate game design, especially in the AAA space.

Member

If anything, as a long time fan, everything I've heard makes it sound like a return to form of the first game than any of the other games in the franchise. Especially with the attempt at doing an actually decent narrative rather than just using the story as an excuse for crazier spectacle and insane slaughter

I'd argue that the first God of War felt fresh and different because it took the DNA of the character action hack n slash, cut out the fat to make it simpler yet satisfying, and integrated it into a tragic story with a surprising amount of puzzles and sense of adventure rather than just a series of combat arenas

This God of War sounds like it's doing the same thing that the first did for the genre but for the God of War series itself

Junior Member

Makes sense that they treat the Norse Gods differently. It's spot on as the greek gods are sort of chess players fucking with the humans like it's a big game.

In norse mythology and the pagan beliefs worshipped in the ancient world, it would be much closer a nature religion; Worshipping the earth, and believing that life is a cycle that ends (Ragnarok) until it starts all over.
The norse gods walk among men, but the dead honorable warriors go to Valhalla.

It would be interesting to fight Thor and Loki and Odin. And particular Balder. He is one of my favorites.

The same reason they'd stand around and not all attack in previous GOWs. Did you also not upgrade weapons in past titles? Didn't you summon attacks like the tornado, spartan protection...bows...rage meter....I mean.